Childhood Friends
by LockBox22
Summary: Don's new case connects him to an old, childhood friend that is hiding a secret that could alter the outcome of the case.
1. Chapter 1

Numb3rs: Childhood Friends

Written By LockBox22

Disclaimer: I do not own Numb3rs or any of its characters; the creators and CBS do. However, I do own my original storyline, plot and any original characters.

o0o

The L.A night was cooler then usual with a gentle breeze blowing in from the ocean. The red and blue lights contrasted harshly with the fading light of the sunset. Several black and white police cars were parked around the driveway of a medium size suburban house along with several dark FBI SUV's. The smell of salt was in the air and tickled Special Agent Don Eppes nose. He sneezed.

"Bless you." David Sinclair, part of his investigative team said from behind him.

Don pulled his head back into the room and was greeted with the acid smell of chemicals. The smell was thick and Don felt the pressure on his lungs as he breathed. No wonder the window had been opened.

He looked at the man lying on the floor by the table littered with science equipment. "Who is he?" Don asked.

"His name is Keith O'Donnell." Sinclair said looking at the deceased man's wallet through the plastic bag that he held in his gloved hands. "Age thirty-five, high school teacher. Here's his I.D."

Don took it the evidence bag from David and peered at the plain, brown, leather wallet.

"According to the neighbours he moved in five years ago and took over teaching at the high school for his father, Greg O'Donnell." Nikki Betancourt said, notebook held in her gloved hand as she stood beside the table.

"And how'd we get called in?" Don asked.

"The neighbours noticed smoke coming from an upstairs window and called fire rescue." Sinclair said glancing at his notes. "After the house was cleared, the locals moved in and called the bomb squad when they saw all this." He waved his hand at the table that contained the science instruments. "After the bomb squad cleared it, they called us in."

"The smoke was actually some sort of gas." The last member of his team - Colby Granger chimed in as he walked over. "Tech's found this canister in the back bedroom." He held it out to Don.

"Looks high end; military tech." Don speculated as he took the clear evidence bag from Granger.

"He could have contracted for the DOD." Granger replied. "Lot's of science people are called in for their certain expertise."

"You don't have to tell me." Don muttered under his breath. He knew a number of certain government agencies that used smart people to do their dirty work.

"So this could be an experiment gone wrong." Sinclair thought aloud.

"Yeah, but none of this equipment is sophisticated enough to handle something like this." Granger said; a former Army Ranger, he would know.

All three of them looked at him.

"What?" Granger shrugged. "I went to high school. This is all stuff used in Chem. 11 or 12."

Don glanced the table over again and realized that Colby was right. Science was never his strong suit, it was always more of Charlie's thing; it having numbers and all.

"It looks like there's some kind of formula on the side of the canister." Sinclair said gesturing the container that Don still held.

Don turned it over. "Looks like some-sort code." He said.

"Let's hope the techs can crack it." Nikki replied.

Don glanced around the room. This wasn't something that would be done by a random house invasion; it was too clean. Sure, everything had been smashed but this spoke more a murder then anything. He looked down at the container in his hands and wondered what secrets it held.

o0o

The sun was shining brightly as Don pulled up to his childhood home and shut off the SUV's engine. He leaned back in his seat and let his head drop against the headrest. The late nights were starting to get to him again. He leaned forward as he noticed a black Pontiac Sun Fire parked in the driveway.

He didn't recognize it. Probably, another one of Charlie's math friends. He thought. As he got out of the SUV, he noticed a dark haired woman also getting out of the Sun Fire. As the woman turned, the light summer's wind blew back her purple blouse and Don glimpsed a gun holster underneath.

His hand slipped down to the holstered Glock at his side. Stop it. He told himself. Not everything is a threat. But his hand stayed on the butt of his gun. Don slammed his door and walked closer. The woman turned at the sound.

"Don!" She called with a smile and a wave.

Don's hand came off his gun and he smiled back as he recognized her. Walking the rest of the way up the drive, Don pulled the woman into a hug.

"Jennifer! What are you doing here?" He asked stepping back to get a better look at her.

Jennifer Scott, a long-time friend of the Eppes, laughed. "It's good to see you too, Don." She replied. She looked his over. "You're looking good."

"You too." Don returned. "It's been along time."

The Scott's had lived next door to the Eppes when Don had been younger. He had been, and continued to be, good friends with Jennifer's older brother Jacob; who was the same age as Don. Jennifer, a few years younger, had tagged along with them on several of their misadventures. Senior year, the Scott's had moved to Hawaii.

Their father, Michael Scott, was an Army Colonel and often got reassigned at a moment's notice. Don hadn't seen any of them since, though he knew his father kept in touch with the Colonel. Alan always left the letters out on the kitchen table and Don suspected that he did it on purpose.

"What's with the hardware?" He asked motioning to the holstered Glock at her side.

"FBI." She told him, showing him the flat badge that had been in her hand. "I went to your office; they told me you would be here."

"Office? Whoa, wait a minute. This is official?" Don asked in surprise. "Jennifer, what's going on?"

Jennifer's happy expression faded and she looked over at her car, hesitation written over her face. Then she looked back to Don. "It's kind of hard to explain." She started slowly.

Don didn't like the way she said that. It sounded serious. "Let's go inside." He said ushering Jennifer towards the front door. He opened the front door. "Dad?" He called, knowing that his father would most likely be home.

He looked into the living room an saw Alan Eppes sitting in his chair in the corner, reading the morning paper. "Right here, Donny." He called back, not looking up from his paper.

"We have a visitor." Don said. Alan looked up and then did a double take.

"Jennifer?" He exclaimed in surprise, throwing down the paper and getting up to give her a hug. "It's good to see you again!"

"You too." Jennifer replied, returning the hug.

"Let me look at you." Alan said taking a step back. His sharp eyes caught the firearm holstered on her belt. "Law enforcement, huh?"

"FBI." Jennifer replied.

Alan nodded. "So what bring you to LA?" He asked.

Don knew that tone; his father had probably already guessed the reason why Jennifer was here; work.

Jennifer hesitated again and looked back at Don. He shook his head ever so slightly.

"Work related I'm guessing." Alan commented looking from Jennifer to Don. "I know that look."

"I can't talk about it." Jennifer admitted finally, settling for the easiest explanation.

"Then I leave you two to talk." Alan said looking at his watch. "I have a meeting with Stan about a new building project. Lock up when you leave, Don."

"I will. Have fun." Don called after him as his father headed upstairs. There was an awkward silence. Jennifer shifted on her feet and then pulled a folded piece of paper out of her jean's pocket. "Here are my temporary transfer orders." She told him.

Don took it the paper carefully and quickly scanned it. "A connection to the case?" He raised his eyebrows as he looked up at her.

"It's not what you think….." Jennifer started.

"It better not be what I think." Don interrupted her as he folding the paper again and slipped it into his own pocket. "I want the whole story. Now."

Jennifer took a deep breath. "Two months ago, we had a case in Hawaii that involved the murder of an FBI agent." She began. "We finally caught the guy last month. Yesterday, my Director told me about your case and sent me on the next flight out of Hawaii."

"What about our case?" Don asked.

"At first glance it looks like the same M.O." Jennifer said.

"You mean the gas in a military container?" Don asked.

Jennifer's face shut down; and Don found that he couldn't get a read on her anymore. "You found a military container?" She asked carefully.

"Yeah. Is the military involved in this?" Don asked, his guard rising. Something about this didn't feel right to him and the poker face she was giving him was too good.

Jennifer hesitated. "Yes and no." She replied finally.

Don gave her a look. She was holding out on him. "Jennifer…"

"Don, don't push the issue." Jennifer told him, holding her palm out as if to repeal his question. "They want me here to find out if it is the same guy."

"They?" Don asked crossing his arms.

Jennifer gave him another look. "My Director."

Don's phone rang interrupting anything he could have said next. "Alright. I'll tell my team." He said and then pulled his phone from its pouch attached to his belt. "Eppes."

After exchanging a few words with the person on the other end, Don hung up. "The techs have finished processing the canister we found." He said grabbing his jacket from the back of the chair where he had thrown it a few minutes before. "You better tag along."

o0o

"This is like nothing I've seen before." The tech told Jennifer and Don. He was a small, dark skinned man with expressive dark eyes and dark hair. His expression could only be named as awe.

"This is some slick stuff." He continued picking up the container and showing it to them. "Military grade and packed with a biological agent that kills upon inhalation. This is all in laymen's terms, but the actual process is similar." He added.

Don nodded absentmindedly as he watched Jennifer study the container closely.

"May I?" She asked pointing to the container.

The tech held it out. "Be my guest." He said with a warm smile. "Just wear some gloves." He cautioned her.

Jennifer yanked on some latex gloves and then took the container from the man. Don watched as she turned it over in her hands and studied the code written on the side.

"No one's been able to crack it yet." The tech informed them.

"Helpful." Don muttered already ready to leave. Jennifer shot him a look and handed the container back to the tech.

"Thanks." She said dropping the gloves on a worktable and following Don out.

"Where to now?" Jennifer asked as they walked to the exit.

"Office." Don said. "You need to meet the team and give me a full brief."

"Alright." Jennifer agreed and they fell into an easy silence as they walked, but Don couldn't help but feel something nagging at him. Jennifer wasn't telling him everything she knew about this case. And how was the military involved in this?

o0o

Once back at the office, Don quickly introduced Jennifer to the team. They had just finished handshakes and hellos when Director Larkin walked up to them. He acknowledged the rest of them and then turned to Don. "Eppes, my office. Now."

His tone was curt and short, but not angry. Larkin had no tendency for small talk. The Director turned on his heel and stalked back to his office.

Exchanging at look with Sinclair, Don followed.

"Close the door." Larkin told him once they had entered Larkin's office. Don did as he was told.

Larkin sat down behind his desk and motioned Don to take a seat. He did and then after a moment, Larkin spoke. "I was going to tell you that an agent from Hawaii was coming down, but I see you've already met her."

"Yes, sir." Don said simply. Larkin waited, hoping that the agent in front of him would volunteer more information, but Don was silent.

Finally, Larkin cleared his throat. "The Director expressed quite explicitly that she's not taking over the case. Agent Scott has an impressive track record and is of equal status with you, so this will be a joint leadership. Your team, her experience."

"I understand." Don said. He had no problem with Jennifer leading the investigation with him. If she had experience with this kind of MO all the better.

There was another moment of silence in which Don knew that Larkin wanted him to volunteer more information. "That's all." Larkin finally said. "Dismissed."

Don stood and left Larkin's office. Once back in the bullpen, he located the team. They had all spread out in the conference room, where the whiteboard had been covered with the pictures from yesterday's crime scene.

"OK, what do we know?" Don asked coming into the room.

Granger, Betancourt, and Sinclair all looked at each other, silently debating who would go first. Jennifer stood silently in the corner, sorting through her files.

Finally, Nikki spoke. "LAPD canvassed the neighbourhood looking for witnesses and come up dry. Either no one's talking or they really didn't see anything."

Out of the corner of his eye, Don noticed that Jennifer had stopped sorting through her file and was now listening intently.

"That's helpful." Granger snorted.

"Forensics is still processing the canister and the ME is doing the autopsy as we speak." Sinclair said picking up the ball. "We should have something tomorrow at the earliest."

"In the meantime, we left sitting with nothing to do." Nikki stated.

Don knew it, and he didn't like it. He gestured. "Jennifer, why don't you bring us up to date on your case?"

Everyone looked to Jennifer, who was sitting on the edge of the table, just slightly behind them. She shifted and then nodded. "Sure."

Everyone half expected her to get up and go to the front of the room -like Don- but she just stayed where she was.

"Two and a half years ago, FBI Agent Trevor Shultz was murdered in his own home with the same kind of poisonous gas used in the murder of your teacher." Jennifer began.

"Keith O'Donnell." Granger supplied helpfully.

Jennifer nodded her thanks to him. "Keith O'Donnell. The canister is military grade and completely lethal. Not something your average Joe is going to be carrying around with him."

"So the military is involved?" Don asked.

Jennifer didn't turn to him. "Not directly. The person responsible for the murder of Agent Shultz is a man by the name of Caleb Ramones, ex-military contractor turned freelance. He is jail, doing three life sentences."

"Three?" Sinclair said asking the question they were all wondering about.

Jennifer's lips tightened. "Shultz's wife and six year old son were also in the house."

"Damn." Sinclair commented softly.

"What was Ramones's beef with Shultz?" Granger asked.

"Shultz and his partner were investigating Ramones and his crew for ambushing a navel transport and stealing a weapons shipment intended for the base." Jennifer replied. "The case was passed on the DOJ because of jurisdiction issues."

Granger raised an eyebrow. "Pretty bold." He commented. "Security is tight on all military transports."

"Somehow, Ramones found a hole." Jennifer replied. "We still don't know how. He's not talking."

"So we have another murder with the same MO used by an ex-military contractor who serving life in a max security prison." Don said summarizing out loud.

Jennifer nodded. "Pretty much. Where do you want to start?" She asked Don.

"Re-investigating the case from top to bottom." Don replied immediately. "Let's find everything there is to know about Ramones and Shultz. Colby, you and Nikki go through the files."

Granger and Betancourt both nodded and dismissed themselves. Going through the paper trail was not the most fun work, but it was necessary.

"I want to work on the O'Donnell angle." Jennifer told Don. "There might be something there that I can pick up on."

Don nodded. "David, work with Jennifer, take her to see the scene."

Sinclair nodded.

"Where are we at with the code?" Don asked remembering the writing on the side of the canister.

"Total bust." Sinclair replied. "The code-crackers got nothing."

Don located the picture of the code on the table and picked it up.

"It doesn't look like any code I've seen." Sinclair said craning his neck to look at it.

"One more mystery to solve." Don replied replacing the picture. He watched as Jennifer glanced at it and then quickly away. Once again, his gut clenched; she knew something.

"Let's go to the scene first." Jennifer said turning to Sinclair. "Then we can come back and work on the paper."

"Yes, ma'am." Sinclair replied.

"Don't call me ma'am." Jennifer told him and then led the way out of the conference room.

Sinclair raised an eyebrow at Don and then followed Jennifer out of the room. Don grave a small smile; David would be fine.

"Hey, Charlie." Sinclair greeted the curly-haired professor as Charlie passed him going into the room.

Don looked up. "Charlie. Hey, what are you doing here?" He asked his brother.

"You left some of your files on the kitchen table." Charlie replied handing them over. He looked out of the glass window as Jennifer and Sinclair continued toward the elevators. "Dad told me Jennifer was here."

Don nodded as he took the files from his brother. "Yeah, it looks like our cases are connected. She's going to be here until we solve this thing."

Charlie nodded absentmindedly as he looked over the files scattered over the table. Don saw Charlie frown and reach for something on the table.

"Whoa!" Don quickly slapped his hand down over the pictures and papers. Charlie had top security clearance, but he didn't need to see the pictures of O'Donnell or Agent Shultz and his family. They were not something that Don even wanted to look at.

Charlie ignored his protest. "Were did you get that picture?" He asked pointing through Don's spread fingers.

Don saw that he was pointing at the picture of the code. Relaxing his grip on the photos, Don grabbed the whole bundle, minus the code picture, and bundled it away messily in a file.

"It's part of an ongoing murder investigation." Don said turning back to Charlie and handing him the picture. "The techs couldn't make heads or tails of it. Why? Do you know what it is? We think it might be a code of some sort."

"You were right." Charlie replied. "It is a code. A scientific code. Larry's students were working on one like this a few days ago. Well, not exactly like this, they're code was about astrophysics and not…"

"Charlie…" Don said warning his brother that he was rambling again.

"Sorry." Charlie apologized. "Can I take this with me?" He asked. "Larry might be able to help you with this."

"Yeah, sure." Don said taking the picture back. "I'll make a copy for you and send it over later."

"Thanks." Charlie said. "Oh and I almost forgot. Dad's wondering if you can find time to have dinner with us this week." He hesitated and then finished. "He wants you to bring Jennifer."

Of course he did. Don sighed. "I don't know, Chuck." He said, running hand through his hair. "This case is going to take up most of our time."

"Dad told me you would say that." Charlie said. "He also told me to tell you that there is no excuse for not taking a little break and having dinner with your family."

"OK. I'll call him." Don said. "I'm not making any promises though."

"Good enough." Charlie said. His phone rang and he dug it out of his jacket. "It's Amita." He told Don. "I have to go anyways. Dinner, don't forget."

"I won't!" Don called after him as Charlie left the conference room, cell phone glued to his ear. Don sighed. if only life was as easy as Charlie and Dad thought it was.

Standing from his lounging position against the table, Don started towards his desk. He would grab the Ramones file from Nikki and do some reading of his own. Maybe then it would answer all the questions he had racing around in his head.


	2. Chapter 2

A few hours later, Nikki dropped a folder onto Don's desk. "Finished already?" He said looking up in surprise. He had just started reading one of the many files on Ramones.

"I think there's something you should see." Nikki said her face serious. Don picked up the file on his desk and quickly scanned it. His face looked like a storm cloud when he was done.

"Excuse me." He muttered angrily as he brushed past Nikki.

o0o

In the break room, Jennifer grabbing some coffee when Don came in. She and Sinclair had just gotten back from O'Donnell house and were preparing to go through the files. She looked up as the door was pushed open. Don's jaw was set and he was frowning.

Jennifer placed the coffee pot back on the warmer and waited for it.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Don asked. He was trying to keep his tone even; he was failing.

"Tell you what?" Jennifer asked trying the innocent approach. She carefully poured milk into her coffee.

"You know what I mean." His voice was practically a growl. He wasn't falling for it. She knew that he would be able to see right through her evasions. His next words - she swore that the coffee vibrated. "You personally caught Ramones!"

It was time to stop playing games. "Yes. I did." Jennifer replied. She grabbed her coffee and turned around to face Don. He was angry; very angry.

"You received death threats! Ramones went after you personally!" Don was yelling by now. "And you didn't think that was something you should tell me?"

The whole office went silent as they witnessed the exchange between the two agents. No one could hear what was going on, but they all could tell that their boss was upset.

Jennifer slowly set her coffee down on the table. "As my boss or my friend?" She asked. "Don, there are somethings that I prefer not to mention. If you looked at my record you'd see a hundred other death threats against me, my partners, my family, and anyone else in my life."

"Besides it doesn't matter." She continued. "Ramones is in jail."

She watched as Don crossed his arms. "Boss?" He asked. "I thought we were partners; partners share things, Jennifer."

"I guess then I'm not used to have a partner." She replied. "Sorry." She walked out of the room, leaving her coffee behind.

o0o

Don sat at his desk for a long time, thinking as he read over the rest of Jennifer's report. His eyes wondered over to where Jennifer and Sinclair sat reading.

The conversation in the break room had told him a few things about the FBI Agent Jennifer Scott; and none of them he liked. A team was supposed to share things, to keep each other informed so that when something happened the other agent's back was covered.

His desk phone rang, interrupting his musings. He picked it up. "Eppes." And then. "Send him up." He looked at the clock. It was way past dinner time. Granger had gone out sometime that afternoon and brought the team a pizza, but that was hours ago. His stomach growled. Don sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He hoped that this wouldn't take too long.

The elevator pinged and Don looked up. A tall sandy haired man walked onto the floor. He stood for a minute, getting his bearing and it have Don a chance to look him over. He was wearing a black suit and underneath the jacket; a shoulder holster.

Don stood and motioned the man over.

"Agent Eppes. Our cases seem to have crossed paths." The other man said by way of a greeting. He held out his hand. "Craig Donavan, U.S Marshal's office." They shook.

"Don Eppes." Don introduced himself. "What can I do for you, Marshal?"

Jennifer and Sinclair walked up as Don had been introducing himself. He turned to them. "David, Jennifer, this is Craig Donavan from the US Marshal's office."

Sinclair shook hands with the Marshal as did Jennifer.

"If you're here it's not good news." Jennifer said. Don raised an eyebrow as Jennifer explained. "Craig is from the Hawaiian office."

Donavan grimaced. "I'm afraid not. Caleb Ramones was discovered missing from his cell two days ago."

"Please tell me your kidding." Sinclair said.

"Sorry." Donavan replied giving the group an apologetic smile. "I wish I was."

"How'd it happen?" Don asked. "It was maximum security, right?"

Donavan sighed. "Yeah, but it seems that the centre had a blackout. Ramones was the only one who escaped."

"So it was deliberate." Jennifer stated.

Donavan nodded. "Someone defiantly broke him out. We think he might be headed here."

"Here?" Sinclair asked.

"Ramones's cellmate said he only talked once and that was to say, and I quote, 'I'll get that bitch who found me.'" Donavan said looking at Jennifer. Sinclair digested this information with a raised eyebrow.

"One of the witnesses families now lives in the L.A area." Jennifer replied. "Ramones ordered a hit on the wife from prison and one of his crew carried it out successfully. The husband and son still could be the main target."

"Since it was our witness, my partner and I been assigned to keep an eye on them." Donavan said. "Just wanted to give you the heads up."

"Thanks." Don replied.

"We'll be in touch." Donavan promised. He turned to Jennifer and smiled. "Nice to see you again, Agent Scott. I wish it was under better circumstances."

"Me too." Jennifer said. Donavan nodded to Don and then left the floor.

"Don't say it." Jennifer interrupted as Don began to speak. "The witnesses are our top priority, not me."

"Yeah, but you're in L.A as well." Don pointed out. "Why not kill two birds with one stone?"

"Ramones isn't like that." Jennifer told him. "He wants everyone to see what he does. He wants you to know that he did it."

"Still I think you should have some protection." Don told her.

"Not going to happen." Jennifer replied firmly.

Don gave her a look. He was really getting tired with her attitude. "Jennifer."

"Don. Drop it. Please." Jennifer said.

"Hey. The lab called." Granger called as he approached with Nikki.

Both Jennifer and Don turned towards them, missing the relived look on Sinclair's face.

"They found a full set of prints and a partial on the canister." Nikki said handing Don the file.

"The set belongs to the teacher." Granger said.

"Uh huh, and the last one?" Don asked.

"It came back unknown." Granger replied. "It's not in any databases."

"So we're right back to where we started." Jennifer stated. "I know that Ramones did it. We just can't prove it yet." She shook her head and then turned on her heel, walking back to her borrowed desk.

Colby and Nikki exchanged a look with Don.

"Are we missing something here?" Nikki asked.

"Ramones escaped from his cell two days ago." Sinclair told them.

"It's a real possibility that he was the one who ordered the hit on O'Donnell." Don said. "Jennifer might be next."

o0o

Three hours later, Don threw down his file and stood up. "I'm going to get something to eat, anyone else want anything?" They all had been hard at work for hours, combing through the past files. Since there had been three separate investigations, it was going to take a while. Everyone quickly agreed on Chinese food. "Chinese it is then." Don said grabbing his jacket.

The cool night air was refreshing on his face as Don stepped out of the building. The Chinese place was just down the road and he elected to walk; the air would do him good. Truth be told, he was frustrated; frustrated with Jennifer and with the case. This wasn't something that he'd wanted dumped in his lap.

The thoughts continued around Jennifer as he ordered and paid for the food. Everything seemed to be connected to her in one way or another. She was one of the keys to solving this case; if only she would confide in him.

Don made a decision on the way up in elevator. He would have to accept the fact that Jennifer didn't want to tel him anything, but he would be civil with her until she did realize that she could trust him.

Once back in the office floor, he set the box on Jennifer's temporary desk. "Dinner is served." He announced, shrugging out of his jacket.

"Thanks." Jennifer said with a smile, setting down her files and opening the box. Granger, Sinclair, and Nikki also traded in their files for some food.

The team pulled their chairs out into the open space between the cubicles, making a circle and started to eat. As the food diminished, they started to relax and talk about other things besides the case. Granger and Sinclair started to relate old stories while Nikki was quick to shoot holes in them.

Don was still grinning when his desk phone rang. He froze in mid-motion, Chinese noodles dangling mid-air from his chopsticks.

"Ah, the curse of the phone during supper hour." Granger joked as the phone rang again.

"Funny, Granger." Don replied handing his noodles to him. The younger agent skillfully juggled the two boxes carefully as Don picked up.

"Eppes." He answered and then listened to the person on the other end for a moment. "Make sure you clear it first. Thanks." He hung up and turned the team. "Someone sent me a package."

Don retrieved his noodles from Granger. "Reception is going to bring it up, Bomb squad's already cleared it." He said in answer to Jennifer's concerned look.

"You think it could be a bomb?" Granger asked looking from one agent to another.

Jennifer shrugged as she ate another piece of pork.

Sinclair was the only one to reply. "Maybe. I don't think so though; it's not very elegant." He tapped the file in front of him. "Not Ramones style."

None of the team felt like eating after that. They all looked over as the elevator dinged and the receptionist walked onto the floor. She spotted them and came right over.

"Agent Eppes?" She asked.

Don stood. "Me." He replied.

She smiled and held out the brown box to him. "Here's the package."

Don took the box from the receptionist. "Thanks." He said, checking the label. "No return address." Don set the box on the desk and pulled out his pocket knife.

Their food now forgotten, the rest of the team gathered around to watch as Don slit the tape on the small box. Nikki found herself holding her breath.

"So far, so good." Sinclair murmured.

Don opened the flaps and then stopped. He reached into his drawer and pulled out a pair of latex gloves. Yanking them on, he reached into the box and withdrew a black, flat object with a stiletto knife rammed through the middle.

"Yikes." Someone murmured. The team stared at it.

"So much for wishing it wasn't a threat." Granger commented. .

Don pulled out the knife. It took a moment because it was so stuck, but finally gave sliding out of the flat surface. "Does anyone have an envelope?" He asked.

Jennifer did and he slide the knife into the manilla envelope. Next, he opened the black object. This time his face went very still.

"What?" Jennifer asked. She came to stand beside him and looked over his shoulder. "It's my flat badge!" she exclaimed in surprise.

"Are you sure?" Sinclair asked.

Don turned the badge around and showed the team. "It's her badge." But Jennifer had shown it to him earlier the morning, how could Ramones have gotten it?

"I lost it almost two years ago when my car was broken into." Jennifer told them. "I always thought it was some petty theft." Jennifer looked at Don as a thought stuck her. "My car… it's still at your house."

"He wouldn't…. Would he?" Granger asked.

Don had already pulled out his phone and started dialling the number he knew by heart.

Jennifer turned to Sinclair. "Don's name has been in the paper, right?" She asked.

"Yeah…" Sinclair replied slowly.

"Then he would." Jennifer replied. "He knows that Don's working the case."

"No answer." Don said; quickly hanging up and grabbing for his jacket.

"I'll call SWAT and tell them to meet you there." Nikki said picking up her phone as the rest of the team ran for the stairs.

o0o

Inside the Craftsmen house, Professor Charlie Eppes threw down the paper he was grading down in disgust. "Can't anyone write a good paper?" He mumbled to himself.

"Apparently not." Amita Ramanijan said setting down the paper, she was reading. "This one isn't even finished."

Charlie sighed. "Put an 'F' on it."

Amita grabbed a red pen and marked the paper. "How's the case for Don coming along?" She asked taking another paper off the pile.

"It's coming." Charlie said shoving the papers aside and pulling out the stamped FBI file-folder. He flipped it open. "Larry managed to figure out most of the symbols, but these ones are bugging me for some reason."

"Let me see." Amita said. Charlie handed the photo to her and she studied it in silence. They both looked up as they heard sirens.

"That sounds close." Amita remarked.

The sirens got louder and a car screeched to a stop outside. Charlie and Amita looked at each other.

The front door banged open and Don entered the house with Jennifer close behind him. They both had their guns drawn and wore blue FBI windbreakers with bullet proof vests underneath.

"Stay there!" Don ordered as Charlie started to get up. Charlie sat down with a thump.

Jennifer checked the kitchen. "Clear!" She yelled to Don.

Don finished his sweep of the downstairs. "Clear." He put a hand to his left ear. "David, what about you? Anything?" Charlie saw that the agents were wearing earpieces.

"What's going on?" Alan asked coming down the stairs.

Don held up a hand. "Got it." He said speaking to Sinclair.

Jennifer holstered her gun. "Long story short, we thought someone might be watching the house." She said.

"Watching the house…. You mean like watching us?" Alan asked as Granger and Sinclair came inside.

"Not likely." Granger said. "We checked out every possible vantage point. Nothing."

"Better safe then sorry." Sinclair said. Amita looked relieved.

"You ok, buddy?" Don asked Charlie.

Charlie nodded. "Yeah."

Alan sniffed. "Do you smell smoke?" He asked suddenly.

"It's coming from outside." Granger said throwing open the front door. The rest of the agents followed.

Jennifer's car was on fire. The smoke was thick and the fire was already out of control. There was nothing they could do. Sinclair quickly grabbed his phone and called the fire department.

"Was anyone near the car before it caught fire?" Granger asked the neighbours who had gathered to watch. No one had seen anything. Faintly, they could hear the wail of the fire engines.

"Let's keep these people back!" Don yelled as the crowd started to get bigger. The team quickly created a perimeter helped by the bold yellow letters printed on the back of their jackets.

The fire engines came screaming down the street. The fire chief jumped out and quickly accessed the situation. "Get everyone back!" He ordered Don. "That gas tank is going to explode in at any-" He was interrupted by a loud boom. Everyone looked up at the car exploded.

Jennifer's phone rang and she grabbed it from her belt.

"Scott." She yelled over the noise, covering her other ear.

"Your car is burning." A deep voice said. "Let's hope your career doesn't go up in smoke too."

Jennifer frowned. "Who is this?" she asked.

"You know who." The line went dead.

"What's wrong?" Don asked stepping closer to make himself heard.

Jennifer returned the phone to her belt. "I just got a call from Ramones. He set the fire." She said as a police car arrived.

"That means he is in L.A." Don said.

"Donavan was right." Jennifer said. Her hand slipped down to her gun.

"David!" Don called the other agent over. "You and Colby do another perimeter check."

"Don't bother." Jennifer said. "He'll be long gone."

"I want to make sure." Don said checking the clip in his gun. "You're going inside." He told her. He held up a hand, stopping her protest. "I don't want to hear it. You're on my turf, you do what I say."

Jennifer looked like she was going to say something. But she didn't; she turned on her heel and stalked back to the house. Don knew that he had just made her very angry.


	3. Chapter 3

Three hours later, the fire crew had finished cleaning up and all was quiet again. Don had told the rest his team to go home. There wasn't anything else they could do. Don lay on the sofa at Charlie's house, not ready to sleep even though it was after midnight. A stack of files still lay on the couch beside him, untouched.

Jennifer sat in a chair across from him, typing on her laptop. Charlie was still grading papers, without Amita's help. Don had sent her home with another agent. He didn't want anyone else caught up in Ramones's revenge crusade.

"The guest room is ready. "Alan said coming down the stairs.

"Thanks, Mr. Eppes." Jennifer said finally looking up from her computer. She hadn't spoken for the last three hours. Don knew why.

"You must be tired after your flight." Alan said sitting down in the living room.

"A little." Jennifer admitted.

"So what are your brothers doing nowadays?" Alan asked sitting down in his chair. "Last we heard Luke had just finished boot-camp."

Jennifer nodded. "Yeah, he's finished now. Matt completed his training with the Navy and then joined a SEALs unit. He's usually travelling all over the place. We never know where he'll be next."

"And how about Jacob? What's he up too?" Alan asked.

"Jacob's a U.S Marshal." Jennifer replied.

"Ah, his childhood dream." Alan said and there was silence for a minute. "Your parents must worry about you."

Jennifer smiled. "Sometimes. By Dad knows that we love doing what we do. Mom's ok with it, but she'd rather we have a nine to five job."

"Do you worry about Don and me?" Charlie asked his father as he started to pack up his stuff.

Alan turned around to look at his youngest son. "Only when your brother drags you to crime scenes or lets you do stupid things like letting you fire a gun or train with certified F.B.I agents."

"Hey," Don protested. "I'll look out for him…"

"A gun?" Jennifer interrupted.

"I went and trained with some F.B.I agents and yes, one of the classes included firing a gun." Charlie said closing his laptop bag. "Don't look so surprised."

"He fired a gun?" Jennifer asked, still disbelieving.

"Yes. He did." Alan said glaring at his elder son.

"Perfect shot." Don said grinning. "Bull's eye."

"All seventeen shots?" Jennifer asked.

Don nodded. "More or less. He finally got over his fear."

"It wasn't fear." Charlie protested as he put the last of his papers away. "More like a healthy respect and I'm going to bed. I'll have the code for you in the morning." He said to Don. "Good night."

"I'm going to bed too." Jennifer said closing down her laptop. "Night."

"Sleep well." Alan said as Jennifer and Charlie went up the stairs. Alan went into the kitchen for some water.

When he came out, Don was still sitting in the living room, files spread in his lap. He looked like he was settling down for another long night. "You should get some sleep, Donny." Alan said.

"Oh, yeah, what about you?" Don asked not looking up.

"Never talk back to a parent holding water." Alan teased as he held the glass over his son's head and tipped it slightly.

"Hey, not on my files!" Don snapped, moving them out of the way. Alan looked at him and then sat down in the chair across from him.

Don sighed. "Look, I'm sorry, Dad. I'm just a little stressed."

"I can see that." Alan said.

"It's just this case, it's-"

"Because of Jennifer." Alan said.

Don looked at his father.

"Don't look so surprised." Alan said. "I noticed the tension between you and Jennifer. What happened?"

"She hasn't tell me something important to the case." Don said careful not to give too much away.

"And now you don't trust her." Alan said.

"It's not that." Don said. "It's just… I wish she had told me, you know? Now I have to worry about some guy coming after her for revenge. What happens if she gets hurt?"

"Did you ever stop to think that maybe Jennifer can take care of herself? She is a fully certified F.B.I agent and she does have three older brothers." Alan pointed out.

"Yeah. I know and Jake would kill me if I let anything happened to her." Don said.

"You've been friends with Jacob for a long time." Alan replied. "I doubt that would happen."

Both men fell silent and Don went back to his files.

"What happened to you two anyways?" Alan asked finally.

"What do you mean?" Don asked looking up from his reading.

"I mean as a couple." Alan said.

"Aw, Dad." Don groaned.

"What? You were cute together!"

"We were never a couple." Don said. "We only went out a couple times."

"I know, but you could still…"

Don interrupted him. "Dad, seriously. Stop playing matchmaker."

Alan looked embarrassed. "Is it really that noticeable?"

"It's that noticeable." Don said.

Alan stood up. "I'm going to get some sleep. Don't stay up too late." He warned his son

"I won't." Don said turning back to the file in his lap.

"Yeah; sure you won't." Alan muttered as he walked upstairs.

o0o

Somewhere in the dark her phone was ringing. Still half asleep, Jennifer reached for it on the bedside table and placed it to her ear.. "Scott." She said sleepily, half sitting up in the bed.

_"Hey! How are you enjoying L.A?"_ A sunny voice boomed in her ear.

"Do you know what time it is?!" Jennifer snapped angrily.

_"Whoa! Someone's grumpy. "_ Christopher Mackenzie, her partner replied.

Jennifer pushed the blankets aside and sat up. "Sorry. I didn't get a lot of sleep." She yawned and looked at the clock; five. "Now, what's up?" She asked.

_"Nothing much. My partner just went off without telling me and leaving me with a handful of cases to handle; by myself."_

"Sorry." Jennifer replied wincing. "They sent me off before I could say anything."

_"You could have called._" Mackenzie's tone indicated his hurt.

"I'm sorry. It's been crazy." Jennifer apologized. Her mind turned to Don.

_"I know. I forgive you. I'm calling because we have that list of Ramones's former contacts."_ He told her.

"That's great!" Jennifer exclaimed. "Can you fax it over?"

_"Done and done."_ Mackenzie replied sounding proud.

Jennifer grinned at his tone. "Great work, Mac." She told him.

_"I do what I can."_ Mackenzie said and then he turned serious. _"How's the case going from your end?"_

"We're making good progress." Jennifer said. "I think we might have found a connection between the two murder victims."

_"That's not what I meant."_

"But that's the answer you're going to get." Jennifer shot back swinging her legs over the side of the bed.

_"Ouch."_ Mackenzie said faking sounding wounded. _"Point taken, partner."_

"How's it going over there?" Jennifer said switching subjects.

_"Oh… you know the usual goofing off from the agents…bad guys still being bad guys…"_

"Chris…" Jennifer said warningly.

_"Things are going great!"_

Jennifer grinned. "Good. Solve lots of cases while I'm gone."

_"Aye, aye Captain._" Mackenzie said.

"Oh and Chris?" Jennifer said sweetly. "Sit at your own desk."

_"How did you know?!"_ Mackenzie sounded astonished.

"My chair's springs squeak." Jennifer said before hanging up. She put the phone back on the table and as she did so, Jennifer saw the door open slowly and she reached for her Glock.

"Jen! It's me." Don said quickly.

"What are you doing?" Jennifer asked replacing the gun back onto the bedside table.

"Sorry. Just checking on you." Don replied. "I thought I heard something."

"My phone." Jennifer apologized. "My team is going to fax over a list of Ramones's known associates. It should be there when we get to the office."

"Ok, great." Don ran a hand though his hair.

"Did you sleep at all last night?" Jennifer asked.

"Why do you ask?" Don said sitting down on the desk chair.

"Your hair is sticking up the same way it did when all six of us went on that camping trip and you and Jake stayed up all night trying to beat Charlie at War."

Don looked sheepish. "Really?"

"Really." Jennifer said trying to cover a grin.

"Hey! No laughing at my hair!" Don tried to sound offended.

"Sorry." Jennifer said, starting to laugh.

"You don't look sorry." Don said sounding stern, but he was grinning as well. He was suddenly very aware of how close they were sitting and how Jennifer's smile lit up her face. She needed to smile more. Something must have shown in his eyes because Jennifer stopped laughing.

"Don't look at me like that." She told him quietly.

"Like what?" Don asked crossing over to sit beside Jennifer on the edge of the bed.

"You know what." Jennifer replied, gathering the blankets around her. "We're not seventeen anymore. Stop it."

"You're right; we're not seventeen anymore." Don said quietly. He leaned forward and caught Jennifer's chin with his hand. She didn't pull away. When their lips met, it was a tentative kiss, a feeling things out kiss.

Jennifer was the first the pull away. She took a breath. "Don, I-" Jennifer never got to finish as she was interrupted.

"Donny! Have some respect!"

They both looked up to see Alan standing in the doorway. "I thought I raised you better then this!" He scolded Don. "Out! Give the lady some privacy."

Don was suddenly aware of how the situation must look. He quickly stood and exited the room. Alan shut the door behind him. "What were you thinking?" He asked.

"I wasn't." Don said simply.

o0o

It was almost half an hour before Jennifer came down the stairs and into the kitchen. The smell of food was too overwhelming to ignore. She found Don with his head in the fridge, pulling things out and placing them onto the counter.

Jennifer leaned against the doorway and watched him for a moment.

A few seconds later -sensing her stare- Don looked up. They didn't say anything for a few moments.

"Sleep well?" Don finally asked.

"Alright, thank you." Jennifer replied walking into the kitchen. "Where is everyone?"

"Dad's busy doing something in town and Charlie's at work. He went early." Don said closing the fridge and held out a container. "Juice?" He asked.

"Please." Jennifer replied sliding on the island stool.

Don got her a glass and poured the orange juice. "Jen, about what happened upstairs…."

"Can we just forget about it?" Jennifer asked as she took the juice from him. "At least until the case is over."

"I don't think we can." Don replied closing the juice container. "We've been ignoring it for ten years."

"And we can ignore it for another ten years." Jennifer told him sipping at her juice.

"Why are you making this difficult?" Don asked. "And I'm not just talking about us."

"You just have to accept that something's I can't tell you." Jennifer replied. "Believe me, Don, I want to tell you, but I can't."

"Try me." Don said.

"Have you been listening to a word I've been saying?" Jennifer asked setting her juice down. "I can't. It's classified. Do you know what that word means?"

"Hey! No need to get insulting!" Don shot back. "I'm just trying to solve a murder here!"

"Same here!" Jennifer yelled back.

"Then tell me what I'm supposed to do?" Don asked.

"Trust me." Jennifer replied. "Trust me enough to let some things slide!"

With that statement, they both fell silent; breathing heavily from yelling and emotion. They stared at each other, until the silence was broken by the sound of breaking glass. An object landed at Don's feet, thrown from outside. It was a metal, military grade, canister hissing a cloud of white gas.

As Don grasped what it was, Jennifer was in motion. Already, the room was filling with the acid stuff, squeezing Don's chest like a vice. He coughed, trying to clear the stuff from his lungs. His eyes watered and his nose ran.

"Jennifer!" He managed to say, stumbling towards her. He felt her catch his arm in vice like grip, as he kicked the canister away. They were still choking. Abandoning the attempt at speaking, Don yanked Jennifer towards the kitchen door.

They both shoved at the door. It wouldn't budge. In confusion, Don tried again. Nothing. Don tried to look for what was causing the door to jam, but the tears in his eyes made it impossible to see anything.

He heard Jennifer cough beside him and Don ran a hand over his face. As if that's going to help. He thought.

Pulling Jennifer away from the doorway, Don dropped her arm and ran at the door. It shuddered, but still held. Don did it again. The door refused to co-operate. With a muffled growl, Don prepared to charge again.

Jennifer grabbed his arm and motioned that she would help. They both ran at the door and it burst open, spilling them and the gas into the living room. Don began to feel like he was suffocating. His head was spinning from lack of oxygen, it would feel good just to lay here and rest for a moment.

NO! Something inside Don screamed and he stumbled to his feet. Jennifer didn't even stir beside him. Wheezing with the effort, Don picked Jennifer up and lurched towards the front door.

Walking blind, he managed to open the door and stumbled down the steps, collapsing at last on the freshly mowed grass. He dropped Jennifer, trying to be gentle and then -feeling sick and nauseous from the fumes- retched into the grass.

Finished, Don rolled onto his back, breathing in fresh gulps of clean, L.A air. He had never cared less about the smog then he did at that moment. Jennifer stirred beside him, the cold air bringing her back to her senses.

Don heard sirens in the distance and knew that someone had called fire rescue. He relaxed and let himself drift slightly in unconsciousness.


	4. Chapter 4

Colby Granger had never driven as fast as he was now, even after a suspect. He pushed the SUV further beyond its limits. In the passenger seat, all David could do was to hold on for dear life.

The chances that they could get there and scope out the area before Ramones or whoever he had sent to do his dirty work could leave were slim, but not impossible. Maybe he was one of those creeps who liked to watch the victims die.

The ride was completed in silence until Colby screeched to a stop in front of Don's childhood home. He and David slide from the vehicle at almost the same time; doors slammed as one thunderclap in the still neighbourhood.

Showing their badges to the officer who had cordoned off the scene, David and Colby scooted under the police tape and looked around for their boss. Don was easy to spot. His commanding voice cut over the general noise that seemed to always come with a crime scene. Don was arguing with the paramedic over what David could only guess what wither or not to go to the hospital.

Jennifer stood beside Don, also arguing with the same paramedic. Both of them were running on adrenaline and the poor man was doing his best to reason with them.

"Don!" David called.

Don whipped his head around and spotted David and Colby. He waved them over and then turned back to the paramedic. The man had taken all the abuse he could stand and -with a curt word to Don- left the two agents alone.

David noted his expression and the set of his lips as the paramedic left and knew that he was not pleased with the way things had turned out.

"What happened?" Colby asked.

"Ramones." Don replied, tight-lipped, his tone annoyed. "He threw one of his canisters into the kitchen and then stopped the door to prevent us from getting out. I want to get this guy."

"Don. Calm down." Colby said smoothly. "You're running high right now and need to cool off."

"No, what I need is to see that bastard in jail where he belongs." Don shot back.

"He's right." Jennifer said. "Ramones is too dangerous to be out on the streets. We need to find him now."

"We're working on it." David interjected calmly. "Don, I think it would be a good idea for you to go the hospital for the night. Let them check you out."

"I'm fine." Don replied quickly. "Let's just get out of here. I have to call Dad and Charlie so they don't come home." He coughed, taking in a deep breath of air.

"I'll do it." David soothed. "Just take a breather."

Don huffed in annoyance, but sat down anyways on the stretcher behind him. Jennifer's phone rang and she snatched at it, looking at the screen. "It's my director." She said. "I need to take this."

"No. You don't." Colby told her easily plucking the device from her hand.

"Granger," She protested.

"Sit down, Jennifer," David ordered softly.

David had seen the signs of shock before and he know saw them in his boss and Jennifer. The insistent need to keep busy, anger, refusing help; they needed to get checked out properly. David also knew that in the back of their minds, Jennifer and Don knew this as well.

With a sigh, Jennifer complied. She coughed and then couldn't stop.

"Medic!" David called looking up for the paramedic.

o0o

"Morning." Don said as he walked into the conference room at the F.B.I office the next day. The hospital had finally let them go earlier this morning. Don had quickly showered and then headed back to the office. Jennifer had joined him, but stopped at the break room to grab some coffee before they touched base with the rest of the team.

"Already?" Granger asked looking at his watch.

"You guys didn't stay here all night did you?" Don asked.

"Been here since I got in." Nikki said.

"I guess we did." Sinclair said. "But it sure paid off."

"Morning, what do we have?" Jennifer asked coming through the door, coffee in hand.

"We found a connection between the teacher, O'Donnell and Agent Shultz." David said. "It seems that O'Donnell did work for the military, in Hawaii, on an experimental project."

"What project?" Don asked.

"Don't know." Granger replied. "It's classified. I could try and talk to some of my contacts."

"Don't bother." Jennifer told him. "I know what they were working on."

They all turned to her.

"What?" Don asked.

Jennifer took a breath. "I've been given clearance to tell you. The military was working on creating a gas that would completely neutralize an armed and hostile subject."

"The canister." Don said.

Jennifer nodded. "The project was abandoned because of the horrific nature of the deaths." She motioned to the pictures. "As you know."

Don didn't turn to look at the pictures. He had seen enough at the scene and the ME's report was just as gruesome. Anyone who came in contact with the gas basically died from suffocation, but the gas was so violent that the victim's blood vessels burst, causing the ears, eyes and mouth to bleed.

"Who comes up with this stuff anyways?" David muttered.

Granger cleared his throat. "The connection is with the canister. O'Donnell invented it, or part of it, and Shultz was killed with it."

"So if Ramones wanted to have it all to himself all he had to do was kill the agent that was after him and the scientist that created it." Nikki speculated out loud.

Jennifer bit her lip. "Not exactly." She said. "He already has it to himself. The truck he hijacked contained two cases of the canisters."

"Oh, great." Granger said with a groan, half tempted to bury his face in his hands. This was going from bad to worse very fast.

Sinclair stared at Jennifer. "So now we have an angry military trained terrorist and he now has enough weapons to kill the entire state."

Jennifer didn't say anything. Don faced her, blocking the rest of the room's view. "Outside, now." He practically growled and the turned on his heel and stalked out.

Jennifer followed him out, closing the door behind her.

"What the hell are you playing at?" Don asked her in a harsh whisper. "Why didn't you tell us this sooner?"

"It's old news, Don." Jennifer said. "It didn't need to be dragged up again. Two years is a long time to hang onto something as valuable as that. For all we know Ramones has sold the cases and is now living comfortably in Cuba."

"The fire?" Don reminded her.

Jennifer shrugged. "Old times sake." She was not going to let go of her theory so quickly.

Don sighed.

"What was I supposed to do, Don?" Jennifer asked. "I was under orders not to say anything. If the general public heard about this, there would be mass panic."

Don nodded reluctantly. He knew Jennifer was right. This need to be kept under wraps. "We're going to need to talk to people from that project." He said. "If Ramones killed one of them, he's going to kill all of them."

"I'll see what I can do." Jennifer said.

"No." Don told her sharply. "You'll call your contacts and get those names. No more screwing around." He turned on his heel and walked back into the conference room.

o0o

"Sure this is the place?" David Sinclair asked as Colby Granger pulled to a stop outside an old house that looked more like a shack.

"Of course it is." Colby said looking in the rear-view mirror at David, who was sitting in the back seat. Jennifer was riding up front with Colby.

"I'm not sure, man. It looks deserted." David said looking at the house.

"It's the correct address." Colby argued holding up the paper.

"Let me see that." David said reaching for it.

"It's the place." Jennifer said putting a stop to their bickering. "Stop arguing. You two sound like children." She got out and then slammed the car door.

"Yes, ma'am." Colby murmured sarcastically as he followed.

The three of them walked up the drive and David knocked on the door. Colby looked through a window. "There's definitely someone living here." He said.

"Professor Conner! F.B.I!" David shouted. A crash come from inside.

Colby sighed. "I'll go around the back."

David drew his weapon and tried the door. It swung open. David looked Jennifer, who nodded and drew her Glock. David went in first, followed by Jennifer. The entire house had been ransacked.

"Clear." David said coming out of the last bedroom.

Colby came inside. "The lock on the back door was picked." He said. "I found some scratches on it."

"Look at this. Someone had a wiretap here." Jennifer said bending down and pointing to a picture.

"Yeah. You're right." Colby agreed. "Wonder who was spying on him."

They all looked up as they heard a car pull into the driveway. David walked to the window and pulled back the curtain, hand on his gun.

"It's Conner." He said.

"Let's go meet him." Jennifer stood.

"He's already here." David replied as the front door opened.

The man who entered the house was of average height and wore jeans and a casual t-shirt. "Who are you?" He demanded, dropping the bag in his hand to the floor.

"F.B.I, sir." David said showing his I.D.

"And what are you doing in my house? Did you make this mess?" Not giving the agents time to respond, he continued. "That's the third time this month!" Conner sounded disgusted.

"You've been broken into before?" David asked.

"Yes and every time they, whoever they are, trash the place and then leave." Conner nudged a broken lamp stand with his foot.

"Do you know a Keith O'Donnell?" Colby asked.

"Yes, we worked on a research project together a few years ago; why?" Conner sounded confused.

"I'm sorry to inform you that he was murdered." Jennifer said.

"I can't believe it." Conner looked shocked.

"We'll need you to come with us. We have a few questions about that research project you worked on." David said.

o0o

Charlie entered the F.B.I Office Building and after going through a metal detector, he retrieved his pass. Then he waited for the elevator and rode up to Don's floor. Exiting the elevator, he spotted Don coming out of the interrogation room. Beside him was an older man with greying hair.

"Don! Hey, Larry and I figured out the code." Charlie called by way of a greeting.

"Great." Don said. "Dr. Conner, this is my brother, Dr. Charlie Eppes."

"Pleased to meet you." Charlie said shaking the other man's hand. "Here's the code." Charlie handed the file to Don.

"May I see it?" Conner asked intercepting the file.

"Have you seen it before?" Don asked.

Conner nodded. "This is the main formula for the first part of the gaseous compound."

"Are you sure?" Don asked.

"Positive." Conner said. "I did work on it for six months."

Colby motioned Don over. Jennifer was waiting with him. "Alright, we're going to need the rest of that compound." Don said as he walked away.

"We're still going through the files and trying to get a lead on where Ramones is hiding out." Colby said.

"I think we should sit on the witness." Jennifer said. "That's the first place Ramones would go."

"Yeah, after Charlie's house." Don said. He held up a hand as Jennifer started to protest. "Don't argue with me! You know I'm right!"

"I only put him in jail. I didn't give the FBI the location." Jennifer said hotly.

"The fax from your office came in." Don said changing the subject. "I'll talk to Ramones's buddies. No one goes anywhere without telling me first." He said pointedly to Jennifer.

"You're sidelining me, Don." Jennifer said. "I'll be more useful in the field."

"I need you here." Don told her.

Jennifer didn't protest, but she wasn't happy about. She clutched her files tight and walked away.

"Stay with her." Don told Colby. "Don't let her out of your sight."


	5. Chapter 5

The rest of the day passed slowly. During the afternoon, Don and Nikki went out to locate some of Ramones's old contacts in the Los Angeles area, while Colby, David and Jennifer continued through the case files. Don was hoping that with fresh eyes they might spot something that had been missed previously.

It was good hunch, but the while time David noticed Colby and Jennifer both looked tense. They were also both ignoring each other. Colby kept glancing at Jennifer and Jennifer looked distracted.

"I'm going to go get some water." Jennifer announced a few minutes later, setting down her file.

Colby watched her go. David looked from Jennifer to Colby.

"Hey man, what's going on between you too?" David asked.

"Nothing." Colby replied turning back to the file on the table. "Don just asked me to keep an eye on her."

Colby looked up again as glass shattered and half stood from his chair. Jennifer had dropped the water pitcher. Another agent was backing away and apologizing profusely, hands waving in front of him. Obviously, he had crashed into her.

"I've got this one." David said clapping Colby on the shoulder and leaving the room.

Jennifer waved off the other agent who tried to help her and started to wipe up the water. David grabbed some paper towels and bent down to help her. He touched her elbow, to let her know he was there and Jennifer spun; one hand reaching towards her Glock, automatically. David held up his hands.

"Sorry." Jennifer said dropping her guard.

"This case is really getting to you, huh?" David commented as he started to mop up the water.

"The ones with kids always do." Jennifer replied.

"Yeah, but there's more going on." David said. "Don..."

"Don is sidelining me." Jennifer interrupted. "I understand that Ramones is threatening me; it's happened before and it's not enough to confine me to the office. He should understand; it's just part of the job."

They finished mopping up the water, when Jennifer spoke again.

"He looks exactly like Charlie." She said. "The witness's son." Jennifer explained seeing David's puzzled look.

"Some curly, black hair and tons of energy. Ramones managed to get to his mom before we caught him. We can't let him get to them again which is what will happen if we stay in the office!" Jennifer angrily tossed the paper towels in the trash can.

David stayed quiet.

"I'm sorry." Jennifer said after a moment. "I shouldn't be putting this on you."

"Sometimes it helps to have someone to talk too." David said. "But I do agree with Don that if you have anymore information about the case you should tell us now; before someone else get's hurt. Before they get hurt." He amended.

Jennifer looked at him for a moment. "You think I want to keep secrets from Don? I'm under orders from people that don't even care who you are, David. This is way bigger then any of you know."

She stood and walked out of the break room.

o0o

That evening when Don and Nikki got back the only thing Don wanted was a shower. He had spent most of the day running down POI's that didn't want to be caught. He stunk, he was tired and they still hadn't found Ramones.

He took a detour to the bathroom – the sink would have to make due- and then headed towards his desk.

"Hey, Don!" Nikki called coming up beside him. He turned to face her as she walked with him. "We just got a tip off from the Marshals. They managed to get name for us. Guess who owns an SUV with LA tags?"

"Caleb Ramones," Don guessed.

"Close. It's registered to an alias of one of Ramones's gang. Paul Bates." Nikki handed him the file. "He's managed to avoid the FBI and has been running things from the outside."

"Wow, this guy is wanted in three states," Don remarked turning pages.

"We still think Ramones isn't in LA?" Nikki asked. Don turned to look at her; Nikki continued, "I've sent it down to tech; they're scanning traffic cameras trying to get a match. Hopefully we can find the SUV."

Don handed the file back to her. "How long until we get any hits?"

Nikki took the file. "Don't know; they've been running it for a while but it could be hours."

"I'll let the others know. Good job," He congratulated her.

o0o

Don knew that Jennifer would have to be informed of the break they had been given in the case and though he knew that sidelining her probably hadn't been the best move – career wise or personally – he knew that Jennifer knew he had made the right call. He just hoped she would be able to move past it quickly.

That thought made him realize that though they had been friends when they were younger, he knew very little about this FBI Special Agent Jennifer. He located her sitting at the desk and head towards her.

He came up behind her and leaned over her chair. "Jen." He said softly, not wanting to startle her.

She turned, putting down her pen. "What's up?" She asked seeing his face.

Don moved to sit on the other desk kitty corner to her. "Paul Bates is in town."

Her lips tightened. "Where is he?"

"We're looking for him," Don assured her.

"I want to sit on the witnesses house, Don." She told him after a moment. "I need too."

"Don." He looked up at Nikki's call. She looked anxious; ready to go. "We got a hit."

Don stood. "Take Colby with you," He ordered. "I'll call you if we find anything."

o0o

The dark street was quiet and Don felt the silence pressing in on him. He lowered the night vision binoculars and quickly motioned for David and the rest of the SWAT team behind him to follow.

The SUV had been easy to spot. It was parked on the opposite side of the road a few driveways down and in this neighbourhood of family vans and small sedans it stood out. Quietly, Don and his team made their way alongside the truck.

Don held up a hand and they all stopped. He resisted the urge to tug at his kevlar. He counted down silently and then motioned forward. The entire team covered both side of the vehicle. Don crept alongside the driver's window and then held his gun in the face of Bates.

"Don't move," Don ordered softly.

Bates had a defeated look on his face as Don pulled open the door and one of the S.W.A.T officers yanked Bates from the driver's seat and cuffed him.

"Don! Come and look at this." David called quietly from the back of the vehicle.

"What's up?" Don asked coming around to the back of the SUV.

"Take a look at this." David gestured to a black bag in the backseat. He pulled it open with one gloved hand, exposing the case inside.

"Sniper rifle." Don accurately identified the gun case. He looked at David. "It's empty."

"We have a big problem." David said. "Somewhere out there is an angry sniper and we have no idea who his first target is going to be."

Don snapped his fingers as he turned away from the backseat. "Jennifer and Colby." David followed as Don continued, "Bates is just the wheelman. We need to call Jen and found out where that safe house is. I have a feeling the sniper is heading there."

o0o

"Turn left here." Jennifer told Colby, moving the phone away from the mouth. She and Colby were driving to the safe house when she had received a call from Donavon. "They're where?" She asked in disbelief. "No. I'm under the assumption that they're following a tip that you gave them." Hang on; we're here."

She hung up the phone and unbuckled her seat belt. "Craig just told me that the FBI is two blocks west, controlling a scene. It's making them nervous."

"Wait; if it's Don that means that Bates is awfully close to the safe house," Colby replied. "What if...?"

He was interrupted as Jennifer's phone rang again. "It's Don." She said, picking it up as she climbed from the SUV. "Don? Where are you?" She asked, tugging down her kevlar. She placed her other hand on her holster.

"Where's the safe house?" Don demanded.

"What?" Jennifer asked in confusion as she and Colby walked up the house.

"We found an empty sniper rifle case in the back of Bates's vehicle; he's just the wheelman. I think the sniper is heading for the witnesses. Where's the safe house?"

Jennifer looked at Colby as Donavon's partner opened the backdoor for them. "There's a sniper." She told him. "We have to move. Don?" She quickly rattled off the address and then ended the call.

She stepped into the house and quickly briefed the now concerned Marshal.

"What's going on?" Donavon asked coming to the kitchen. Colby stepped forward, keeping his voice down. "Agent Eppes just let us know that they have reason to believe that a sniper may be in the vicinity."

Donavon looked towards his partner. "We're moving them." He looked at Jennifer. "If you're convinced that this is legit..."

"It is." Jennifer replied. "I trust Don."

Donavon motioned. "Come with me." They followed him into the living room as Donavon's partner started to talk on his radio.

"This is Agent's Granger and Scott." Donavon said introducing the F.B.I Agents to the older man who had just got up from the couch he had been reclining on. "Agents, Greg Smith."

"What's going on?" Smith asked looking at Donavon.

"We're going to need to move you." Donavon replied. "It's for your safety."

Smith nodded. "I'll get my things."

"Where is your son, sir?" Jennifer asked suddenly.

"Joey is in the bedroom playing video games." Smith replied. "I'll get him. He's a little shaken by all this."

Jennifer assumed by 'all this,' Smith was referring to the last year. "No, no." She interrupted, stepping forward. "I'll get him. I need you to stay with my partner."

Donavon nodded. "Greg, I'm going to need you to..."

Jennifer tuned them out as she walked into the back bedroom of the home. She gently eased open the door. Joey sat on the floor, engrossed in his racing game. He was pretty good at it too. His car raced around turns and passed the other cars.

"Great race." Jennifer said as Joey put down the controller to reach for the chips in front of him. Joey turned to look at her and Jennifer was surprised at how old his eyes looked. This kid had seen a lot.

"Who are you?" Joey asked warily.

"Special Agent Jennifer Scott. F.B.I." Jennifer replied giving her full title.

"Can I see your badge?" He asked getting up from the floor. He had grown since the last time she had seen him. Then again, he had only been four.

"Sure." Jennifer unclipped it from her belt and handed it to him. She looked up as Colby poked his head into the room.

"We've got to go." He told her quietly. "Donavon's got a sniper on the roof; we'll be covered."

"Got it." Jennifer spoke normally, as not to alarm the boy. "We're coming." Colby disappeared around the corner. "What do you say to getting out of this house for a few days?" She asked turning to Joey.

"I want to go to the park and play baseball, but Dad said not this week." Joey told her. "Can there be a park where we move?"

"We can look for one." Jennifer said. "Why don't we get your dad and go?"

"All right!" Joey yelled running to the other room. "Dad! We can go to the park!" Smith looked up and caught the running child in his arms.

"I assume you've been briefed?" Jennifer asked.

Smith nodded. "Agent Granger and Craig was kind enough to let me in. Joey, I want you to go with Agent Scott." Smith bent down to his son's level and spoke calmly to him.

"You're not coming?" Joey asked a small frown screwing up his face.

"I'll be right behind you." Smith promised. "Agent Granger is going to come with me, just like in the T.V. shows."

"Cool!" Joey exclaimed.

"This way, sir." Colby said, motioning. Jennifer held out her hand to Joey and he took it. She was still surprised at how small a child's hand was.

o0o

Don and his team double timed it back to the house. Don was glancing all around, looking for the tell tale flash or muzzle of a gun barrel. He was glad that the Marshals and they had each a sniper covering them from above.

A bulletproof car was waiting behind the perimeter the LAPD had set up for them. Don saw Donavon pull open the door for Smith, who was being escorted by Colby. Jennifer and the boy were just behind them and Don thought they just might make it in time. Then all hell broke loose.

A car window exploded behind one of the LAPD officers, who ducked for cover. Don caught the muzzle flash from across the street. "The sniper's on the south-west roof!" Don yelled into his radio, ducking as a bullet shattered the window above him, raining glass over his head.

"Man down!" He heard someone yell and Don looked wildly around.

Donavon was down on the ground. From this angle, Don couldn't see if it hit the vest or not. Colby and Nikki started shooting in the general direction of the sniper, but Don knew that their fire would have no effect. A harden sniper wouldn't move.

"No shot, repeat, no shot." The F.B.I sniper said over the radio. "Sniper is too heavily covered."

"Confirmed." The Marshal's sniper replied.

o0o

Jennifer heard the reports over her earpiece as she hurried Joey into the car. She pulled her gun. She forced herself to ignore Craig who was on the ground and shoved Joey into the car, heat flashed past her arm from a bullet. Quickly slamming the door, Jennifer rapped on the roof.

The car drove away and Jennifer headed towards safety behind a squad car. A sharp pain hammered into her side, slamming her to the ground. Jennifer had felt it before; the vest had caught one. She tried to breathe and felt red hot fire jab into her side. Then it struck her. The bullet had passed through the Kevlar.

Faintly, she heard the bullets stop and then Colby was beside her. She heard a quick intake of breath from him. It must be bad. She thought.

o0o

On the other side of the road, Don stood from his kneeling position. "Everyone alright?" Don yelled as he brushed the glass off himself and moved into the open.

He surveyed the damage. Donavon was still on the ground, one of the Marshals attending to him. A car window and the house window were completely shattered. He looked around for his team and saw Jennifer on the pavement, Colby beside her.

"Jen!" Don yelled and ran for her.

Colby had already applied pressure to the wound. "Sniper got her right through the vest." He said as Don knelt beside them.

Jennifer was still conscious, but her breathing was laboured and she was in a lot of pain.

"Jen, hang in there." Don told her.

"Press over my hand." Colby told him. "There's too much blood."

Don pressed his hand over Colby's; hoping to help stop the blood. It didn't do much, Jennifer's blood still seeped through the cracks in his fingers.

"We need a bus over here!" Don bellowed over his shoulder to the rest of the agents. "Stay with me, Jen." He said turning back to Jennifer. "Stay with me."

o0o

Don paced the waiting room floor. He had been allowed to ride with Jennifer in the ambulance, but had been told to get out of the way as soon as they had entered the hospital. He had already phoned Jacob and gotten his secretary who assured Don that she would give the Marshal the message. Don had been waiting for five hours already, what was taking so long!

"Don!" He looked up at David's voice. He and Colby entered the waiting room.

"Any word yet?" Colby asked.

Don shook his head. "None. What do you got?"

"Agents canvassed the building where that shooter was and found some blood. We should have the DNA results in a few hours." David said.

"He got away again." Don sighed in annoyance.

"We don't know for sure that the shooter was Ramones." Colby cautioned.

"It was him." Don replied.

There was silence and then Don spoke again. "How's Donavon?"

"He'll be ok." David replied. "The Kevlar managed to stop the round; though he'll have one hell of a bruise."

The silence came back, worse this time. Finally, the door opened and a doctor came out. He walked over to Don and his agents.

"How is she?" Don asked.

"We've managed to stop the bleeding." The doctor said. "The bullet just nicked her left lung, so Jennifer will need to be support for a while, but she's going to make it."

Don sighed quietly.

"You can see her in about in hour." The doctor continued.

"Thank you." Don said. The doctor nodded and walked away.

"Donald Eppes!" Someone called and Don turned around. A man was heading towards them at a fast walk. His dark suit jacket flapped open, exposing a holstered sidearm under one arm. His dark brown hair was cut short and his green eyes were worried.

"What the hell did you do to my sister?" He demanded angrily.


	6. Chapter 6

Don jerked awake as the other occupant of the room moved. His hand touched the reassuring weight of his firearm as he watched the newspaper that Jacob Scott had been pursing through fell to the floor.

"Sorry." Jacob apologized, bending down to get the paper. He yawned. "I'm going to go get some coffee." He said and stood, stretching. "Want some?"

Don nodded and Jacob left the room. It had been two days since Jennifer had been brought into the hospital. She was still unconscious, but they had taken the ventilator off and she was now breathing on her own.

Don had fully explained what had happened to Jacob and Jennifer's older brother had calmed down after that. He had been following the case and knew some of what happened during the last year. Don ran a hand over his face. He had just slept off and on through the nights, unable to sleep fully.

Don looked up as he heard someone at the door. He recognized them as the witnesses from the Ramones case.

"Agent Eppes?" The man asked.

"Yes?" Don asked. He stood and moved to the doorway as not to disturb Jennifer. He saw four Marshals further down the hall and knew that they had taken a risk coming here.

"I'm Greg Smith." The man introduced himself. He motioned towards the boy at his side. "Joey has something for Agent Scott."

"She gave me this." A little voice said. Don looked down at the boy who looked about 5 or 6. "I wanted to know if she really was an F.B.I agent." He said holding out Jennifer's badge.

"Why don't you give it to her?" Don said. Joey looked up at him.

"Can I?" He asked turning to his dad. Smith nodded. Joey walked to the bed and put the badge into Jennifer's hand. He then quickly walked back to his father.

"How is Agent Scott's condition?" Smith asked looking at Don as he put an arm around his son.

"The doctor's say she should make a full recovery." Don said being as non committal as possible, but still giving the man an answer.

"That was a brave thing she did, covering Joey." Smith said. "We owe her a debit of gratitude."

"I'll be sure to tell her that." Don said. He shook the man's hand and then Smith and Joey left. Don went back into the room and sat back down in the chair. He looked up again as Jacob walked back in.

"Who was that?" Jacob asked, frowning down the hall before turning to Don; coffee cups in hand.

"The boy Jennifer saved and his father." Don said, taking the coffee that Jacob held out. "Thank you. They wanted to give Jen back her badge."

Jacob placed his coffee on the table and then reached for the badge, taking it out of Jennifer's hand. Suddenly, her fingers grabbed his and held on tight.

"Jacob?" She asked softly, her voice coming out horse and weak.

"Thank god! I'm here, Jen." Jacob said bending down and brushing some hair off her face. "I'm here."

o0o

A day later, Jennifer was awake and was sitting up when Don entered the room. Jacob had told him the night before to go home, get some sleep and take a shower and Don had done so. He stopped at the doorway, hearing voices, and looked in. Three, dark-haired, very good-looking men were gathered around Jennifer's bed. They all looked up as he entered, the conversation ceasing.

"Oh no," Don teased pretending to back away. "Wrong room."

"Get in here, Mr. F.B.I." The middle brother, Matthew, said grabbing Don by his shirt front and pulling him into the room. Don let himself be dragged until he was standing beside the bed.

"What's this we hear about our sister getting shot?" The eldest of the four, Luke, demanded standing on the other side of the bed, hands on his hips.

"Don't hurt him too badly." Jacob piped up from where he sat in the chair beside the bed. "He did call me."

"Doesn't count." Matt replied, his hand still wrapped in Don's shirt as he stared him down in jest.

"It wasn't his fault, guys." Jennifer motioned. "Let him go. The world needs him."

Even he knew that they were just fooling around, Don looked at the three men; all of them knew how to hurt him in a different way. One Army, one Navy and the other a federal agent.

Matt let go of Don's shirt. "Ok. For you, we can restrain ourselves." He said.

"Thank you." Jennifer said; her tone indicated this had happened before.

"You tell me to take a shower and then let these hooligans in here?" Don asked Jacob accusingly, straightening out his shirt and jacket.

Jacob shrugged. "Don't look at me, they had guns." They all laughed at that, but it was true. Though Jacob was the only one who wore an actual holster, Don would have bet that Matt and Luke both had something on them.

Jennifer winced. "No more jokes." She gasped. "It hurts."

"Should I get the nurse?" Luke asked concerned as he bent over her.

"I'm ok." She said giving him a small smile and grabbing his hand.

"So like I was saying," Matt dropped himself onto the edge of the bed. "When do you get out of here?"

"Tomorrow, finally." Jennifer replied, letting go of Luke's hand. "I'm ready for a change of scenery."

"I'll bet." Luke muttered, looking around the bare and sparse hospital room.

"You should see that whack of pills they gave her." Jacob said to Don, lightening the mood. "Drug possession times three."

"It's all legal, you idiot." Matt said swiping at Jacob's head with the rolled up newspaper he held.

Jacob ducked. "Missed." He sang out happily, slipping back into the younger brother role easily.

"Knock it off you two," Luke warned. "We're already over the people limit in here. And if you don't keep it down..."

As if she heard them, a nurse came into the room.

"Speaking of whom." Jacob muttered under his breath.

"Alright some of you will have to leave. One person only in here." The nurse said. She looked around at the four of them and just raised an eyebrow. "You've got lucky, honey." She said to Jennifer. "Now how'd you get four good looking men to come and visit you?"

"Brothers." Jennifer replied as the nurse checked the monitors. "And they'll be leaving soon."

"I'll be staying." Luke told her grabbing the chair that Jacob had just vacated and sitting down.

"First born." Matt retorted, annoyed.

"Right, I am." Luke replied calmly. "And I'm the one that doesn't have a lot of time. Now scram, all of you. Let me have some time with my sister."

"I need to talk with Don first." Jennifer said, glancing over at him. "Just a minute." She replied to Luke's concerned look.

He nodded as he stood from the chair. "Alright. Come on, you two." He said to Matt and Jacob as he herded them from the room. "Let's get some coffee."

Don watched silently as the nurse quickly fluffed up Jen's pillows and then left the two of them alone in the room, closing the door behind her.

"Did you get him?" Jennifer asked into the silence that pervaded.

Don shook his head. "No; sorry, Jen. He was gone by the time we found the nest."

Jennifer's fist gently pounded the sheets. "It was Ramones. I'm sure of it." She told him. "He's a trained sniper; Army during Iraq."

"There was some blood left at the scene; the lab's still running it." Don told her. "We'll get him."

"Not soon enough." Jennifer muttered darkly.

There was another awkward silence; Don broke it again. "Jen, I..." He was interrupted as the door opened again and Luke entered.

"Minute's up." He said quietly. "Don. She needs some rest." He motioned towards the door.

"Dad says you can stay at the house until you get the all clear to fly." Don told Jennifer as he walked towards the door. He turned back. "I'm glad you're alright." He told her.

She nodded. "Me too."

"Get some rest," He told her and then left the room. Luke closed the door behind him. Don didn't make it two feet before the other two brothers were on him.

"Talk." Matthew ordered him, crossing his arms across his chest; his earth brown t-shirt pulling tight in all the right places. Don had a feeling he was getting a hint of what the NAVY SEAL was like in the field.

"I've given him what I know, Don." Jacob said. "But I think both of us would like to hear about this case again. Who's Caleb Ramones?"

o0o

"I can walk, G.I Joe," Jennifer protested from Luke's arms as he carried her into the Eppes house. "I wasn't shot in the leg."

"The doctor said to stay off your feet and off your feet you'll stay." Luke said firmly, coming to a stop in the middle of the entrance.

"The couch is ready." Matt announced in a fake English accent, bowing like a butler.

Jennifer shot him a glare as Luke headed into the living room. "Don't over do it, Alfred. Your old age might become an issue!" She called over her brother's broad shoulder.

"Where is everyone?" Jacob asked, putting Jennifer's bag down on the other couch.

"Dad had another meeting with someone." Don said grabbing the mail from off the table and rifling through it. "And Charlie went to the college. They'll be back later for dinner; which you are all invited too." He said to the Scott brothers.

"Sounds good," Matt replied.

A cell phone rang interrupting anything that could be said. Everyone grabbed for theirs, including Jennifer who was intercepted by Luke. He gave her a look.

"It's mine, sorry." Matt said, holding up the device. "Scott," He answered as he walked out of the room. "Yeah?" The front door closed behind him.

"Don and I will be going to the F.B.I office later." Jacob told Jennifer, easing the tense mood in the room.

"Good." Jennifer said getting more comfortable on the couch. She winced and then continued. "You can bring me all my files and also the…."

"Ah!" Luke cut her off. "No work, Jen; you need to rest. Read a book, let Jacob entertain you."

"Then I'm definitely in trouble." Jennifer grumbled. "Don, please?" She begged, changing tactics.

Luke looked at Don, waiting expectantly for his answer.

Don shrugged. "She needs to get the files anyways." He said. "They're taking up room in my office. But they will be sitting in a box until you get some rest." He told Jennifer. His phone vibrated. "Excuse me." He stepped away to answer it, getting away from the hot glares of three pairs of green eyes.

"Eppes," He answered. It was Colby.

_"Don, I know you're busy; but Donavon's here and he needs to speak with you right away. Something about Ramones."_

"Tell him I'll be right down." Don said and then snapped his cell closed.

"Donavon's waiting at the office." He explained to the group. "He says he has something to tell me about Ramones."

"I'm coming with you." Jacob said grabbing his jacket from the chair of the couch. "I need to have a talk with this Marshal."

The front door opened and Matt came back in. He stopped, seeing the look on everyone's faces. "What's going on?" He asked.

Don quickly explained the situation. "You want to come?" He asked.

Matt looked a little torn. "Love too. But I'm going to have to decline; I'm being recalled." The tension in the room increased. Don got the feeling that Matt had seen the most action out of all of them.

"Bad?" Jennifer asked from the couch.

Matt walked towards her and settled into the seat across from her. "No, but I only have a few hours."

"Luke?" Don asked.

"You two go ahead." Luke said. "One Scott is enough for the poor man to handle."

"Be careful." Matt cautioned Jacob. "Don't leave any marks on this one."

"Gotcha. Be back soon." Jacob promised as he and Don went out the door.

o0o

Several hours later, Don pulled into the driveway and shut off the engine. He leaned his head against the seat and let out a deep breath. It had been a long week and Donavon hadn't made it any easier. Sitting up, he took the keys of the ignition and opened the car door.

"Hello?" Don called into the empty house. He closed the door behind him.

"Hey." Jennifer said from the couch, looking up from her smartphone. "Did you get my computer?"

"Yeah." Don said throwing his keys onto the small hall table and walking into the living room. He handed the computer to Jennifer along with some of her files. He put the rest down on the chair and then looked around at the empty room. "Where is everyone?"

"Matt shipped out almost an hour ago, flying off to somewhere classified. Luke is here somewhere -probably in the kitchen with your Dad- and Charlie's not back yet." Jennifer said flipping through the stack. "I think they got tired of my grumpy company. Where's Jake?"

"Coming." Don said. "He's at the Marshal office; he needed a secure line. He said something about maybe having to fly back to Boston soon."

Jennifer let out a sigh. "The bad guys don't rest, do they?"

"No, they don't," Don agreed quietly. He took the couch beside Jennifer. "Donavon informed me that they think Ramones has left the country. The Marshals got a tip off that he had been seen at a small airport in Santa Barbra, but by the time they got there he was gone."

Jennifer nodded. She didn't say anything.

"Their best guess is that he's in South America or the Caribbean," Don continued.

She still didn't say anything. The silence that pervaded was tense and full of unspoken thoughts.

"Dinner should be ready soon." Don said finally, breaking the silence.

"Something other the hospital food sounds good right now." Jennifer replied as she leaned forward to put the files on the table with her laptop. She winced as the stitches pulled.

"Here, I got that." Don said taking the bundle from her.

"Thanks." Jennifer said resting against the couch. "I think it's time for one of those painkillers."

"These ones?" Don asked holding up one of the bottles.

Jennifer nodded and Don handed her a glass of water and the pill. Jennifer took it and then Don put the glass back on the table. She had her phone back in hand when he turned back to her.

"Jen, we need to talk about the other day. The conversation we had?"

"Which one?" Jennifer asked absentmindedly.

"The one in the kitchen." Don replied. Jennifer looked up and then Don realized what the other half of the conversation had been. "About the classified material." He quickly clarified.

"What do you want me to say?" Jennifer asked sighing as she put her phone away. "I think it's all been said already. I can't tell you, as much as I want too."

"Ok, then don't say anything; just listen," Don told her. "Obviously, the people who have classified this are the Army, which is why you can't say anything. I also get the feeling that this goes way above our pay grades because of the comment you made to David and that some high level players are involved. But as long as Ramones is on the loose, I'm not going to be able to let this one go. You can either tell me or I'm going to have to dig."

Jennifer looked at him. "That's about everything I know," She replied. "Give or take a few names, but I'm sure it won't take long to find those out." She held up a hand as he started to speak. "Don, please don't push; I can't tell you what I don't know."

He nodded. "Ok."

"You want to talk about the other half of that conversation?" She asked. "Because our jobs are just too complicated for us to have a healthy relationship, so I wouldn't blame you if..."

She trailed off when Don brushed a stray strand of hair from her face. "I'm willing to try if you are." He said.

"But..." Jennifer started.

Don leaned over. "No excuses." He told her. "We can do that later." He kissed her. When he drew back, Jennifer was smiling.

"You've gotten better at that." She told him quietly. When he didn't answer right away and continued to gaze at her, she bit her lower lip.

Don smiled at that familiar action. "You want to see if I can get any better?" He asked cheekily.

"Shut up and come here." Jennifer ordered grabbing Don's shirt collar and pulling him to her again.

Outside, concealed in some bushes across the street a long camera lens poked out. The person behind the camera clicked away, taking pictures of Don and Jennifer making out on the couch, the other two men happily cooking in the kitchen, and then of the curly haired professor as he made his way from the car into the Craftsmen house.

The person moved the camera away from his face and smiled. Insurance was good to have. You never knew when you needed to ruin someone's life.


End file.
